Jayce Legaarden had a taste of what it's like to play in the Manitoba Junior Hockey League last season as he played two regular season games with the Winkler Flyers. He also suited up in two playoff games as the Flyers made the second round.
While he got that taste, Legaarden played full-time with the Parkland U18 Rangers and he had a career year. His 46 goals were the second-most in the league, only behind Nolan Chastko who recently scored his first MJHL goal with the Virden Oil Capitals.
Jayce also contributed 34 assists to finish solo fourth in league scoring. He carried that regular season momentum into the playoffs as he scored three more goals while adding five assists as the Rangers made the second round of the playoffs for the first time in more than 20 years. It was a special year for Parkland and it was a special year for Jayce.
While Rangers fans won't get another opportunity to see him play in a Parkland jersey, Legaarden is showing why the Rangers are a great program in developing their players to play full-time at the next level and that's exactly what Jayce is doing. The Grandview native has played both of the Flyers games this season and he's off to a tremendous start. Winkler is 2-0 and they're tied for the top spot in the East Division.
"It's definitely a big jump going straight from AAA to junior," said Legaarden. "Playing those few games last year helped a lot so I'm glad I had that opportunity."
While Jayce admits making the move up is somewhat of a daunting task, he has seemed to do it seamlessly. With his five points, Jayce is tied for third in league scoring, only behind Riley Zimmerman and Ashton Paul. He's also tied with his teammate Mike Svenson with five points.
"This success has completely surprised me, I wasn't expecting to have as good a start as I have," offered Legaarden. "I'm just hoping to keep it going."
Legaarden opened the season with a three-assist performance in a 5-3 win against the Winnipeg Freeze on opening night last Friday. Then fast forward to Saturday in front of more than 600 fans at the Centennial Arena in Winkler, Jayce scored his first Manitoba Junior Hockey League goal at the 13:23 mark of the third period. He also chipped in one assist in the 7-2 thrashing of the Winnipeg Blues, the same team that they eliminated in the first round of the playoffs last season.
It took Jayce just six games to record his first point with his new team and seven to pot his first goal.
"It was a pretty special feeling," said Legaarden. "My dad managed to make it down for the game and it was great to score in front of him, I felt great about it."
Winkler will now look to keep it going as they hit the ice Wednesday night against the Niverville Nighthawks. Jayce will make his return to Credit Union Place on November 13 when the Flyers come to Dauphin for a 4:00 p.m. puck drop.
